Skip to main content
FamilyEducation
FamilyEducation
Family Education

FE-Menu

  • Pregnancy
    • <blank>
      • Pregnancy Tracker
      • Trying to Conceive
      • Signs & Symptoms
      • Pregnancy Health
    • <blank>
      • Baby Names
      • High Risk Pregnancies
      • Preparing for Baby
    • <blank>
      • Concerns & Complications
      • Labor & Delivery
      • Postpartum
  • Baby Names
    • <blank>
      • Browse All Baby Names (A-Z)
      • Top Names for Boys
      • Top Names for Girls
      • Baby Name Generator
    • <blank>
      • Baby Name Lists & Ideas
      • First Names By Origin
      • Browse All Last Names (A-Z)
      • Last Names by Origin
  • Babies
    • <blank>
      • Caring For Your Baby
      • Baby's Health
      • Feeding Your Baby
    • <blank>
      • Your Baby and Sleep
      • Baby's Growth & Development
      • Baby Hygiene
    • <blank>
      • Baby Safety
      • Baby Products
    • <blank>
  • Toddlers
    • <blank>
      • Toddler Growth and Development
    • <blank>
      • Toddler Behavior and Discipline
    • <blank>
      • Your Toddler and Sleep
  • Kids
    • <blank>
      • Health
      • Childhood Development
      • Fitness & Nutrition
      • Childhood Safety
    • <blank>
      • Communicating with Your Kids
      • Childhood Behavior and Discipline
      • Fostering Responsibility
      • Instilling Values & Manners
    • <blank>
      • Childcare
      • Neurodiversity in Kids
      • Adopting Children
  • Teens
    • <blank>
      • Teen Health
      • Teen Puberty & Sex
    • <blank>
      • Behavior & Discipline
      • Teen Social Development
    • <blank>
      • Values & Responsibilities
  • Activities
    • <blank>
      • Printables
      • Indoor Activities
      • Learning Activities
      • Arts and Crafts
      • Performing Arts
      • Food Activities
      • Outdoor Activities
    • <blank>
      • Books
      • TV
      • Movies
      • Online
      • Quizzes
      • Games
      • Celebrities
    • <blank>
      • Parties
      • Travel
      • Toys
      • Holidays
      • Gifts
  • Learning
    • <blank>
      • By Grade
      • By Subject
      • College
      • Preschool
    • <blank>
      • Back to School
      • Study Skills
      • Learning Styles
    • <blank>
      • Homeschooling
      • Parental Involvement
      • Your Child's School
  • Family Life
    • <blank>
      • Mom Life
      • Dad Life
      • Family Relationships
      • Having a Healthy Marriage
      • Divorce
    • <blank>
      • Health & Fitness
      • COVID Resources
      • Managing Your Home
      • Moving Your Family
      • Pets
    • <blank>
      • Family Finances
      • Work
      • Families and Food
  • NewslettersNewsletters
    Newsletters

Breadcrumb

  1. Home
  2. School and Learning
  3. By Subject
  4. Science
  5. Eight Steps To A Great Science Fair Project

Eight Steps to a Great Science Fair Project

Follow the steps in this guide for a successful science fair project.
familyeducation logo
FamilyEducation Staff
Updated: December 1, 2022
  • facebook share icon
  • pin
  • twitter share icon
  • email share icon
  • Print page icon

Eight Steps to a Great Science Fair Project

Getting Started: Steps 1 - 4 For your child, making the decision to enter the science fair is a very exciting thing. Tackling questions and finding solutions through experimentation goes hand in hand with the development of your child's left brain thinking. A science fair project can teach your child to find answers through responsibility, commitment and diligent work. Your willingness as a parent to help this process along will be enjoyable time spent with your child and will bring back fond memories of your own scientific discoveries!

1. Research
Sit with your child and make a list of topics of interest. If you need help coming up with specific ideas, go to your local library or search the Web for books and lists of science fair projects.

For the older child, have her do research on her own. Ask her to present her ideas to you.

2. Turn the idea into a science fair project
Once your child comes up with an idea, determine what question will be answered through the project. In other words, a question needs to be posed and then a hypothesis needs to be made (i.e., a guess as to what the results will be). How your child goes about answering this question becomes the project.

Don't forget to consider the age of your child, the safety (or lack of) involved with the proposed project, how elaborate and time consuming the project will be, what materials will be needed, and so on. By understanding her capabilities, you can help your child choose a project that is right for her. Remember that learning should be fun rather than stressful for both of you.

3. Create a budget
All supplies needed for the project must be purchased or found around the house. This includes everything needed for the actual experiment (e.g., a logbook to record observations, a presentation board for the actual fair, display materials). Remember to ask as many questions before committing to the project: Will your child need to photograph the experiment in process? Make graphs?

4. Prep
Designate a space within your home for the project. Take variables and other factors into consideration: Light, temperature, humidity, and so on. (For some experiments, any or all of these factors will weigh heavily and influence the end results.)

From Project to Fair: Steps 5 - 8
5. Discuss
To begin the project, create a timeline or have a discussion about how much time this project will take to complete (in time to enter the fair!). How much time will be needed in observation? Is a chart needed to record information at specific times? Does water or some chemical need to be administered? Together, create a strategy for success and set up a schedule so that your child can remember all of her responsibilities.

6. Don't forget to document!
This is a key component to the success of the project. Your child must spend ample time observing and recording her findings. The judge will be looking for good note taking with thought provoking observations. Spend time with your child--teach her how to ask questions and speak about her newfound discoveries. Encourage her enthusiasm by showing a genuine interest.

For the older child, have her reference scientific sources and compare her findings with similarly recorded experiments. This will lend her project credibility and impress the judges with her in-depth study of the subject.

7. Create a display
Nothing sells better at the science fair than a good display. Whether you have purchased a pre-made display board or created one with matte board, here's a great opportunity to introduce your child to some basic advertising and marketing skills. Ask you child to think of a favorite commercial or advertisement and ask her what she likes about it. Then, encourage her to apply similar concepts in order to 'sell her product.'

Some things to consider:

  • choose bright colors to draw people to your booth
  • use clear and simple language and place the project results prominently in the center of the board
  • make sure the logbook (or any documentation) is easy to read and follow
  • use computer graphics with bar and pie graphs

8. Get ready for the fair! (Test the scientific method)
The final moment has arrived! Here, your child's commitment and hard work really shines. Does she have a healthy understanding of the subject? Did she ask good questions? Is she prepared to answer questions and talk? Set up a few 'mock' sessions where you become the judge and ask your child to make her presentation. You can ask questions and give constructive criticism on how she can make her presentation the best it can be.

Remember! The most important thing is that your child has fun throughout this process. Try not to put too much pressure on perfection -- instead, support your child's desire to discover and learn in new and thought provoking ways.

familyeducation logo
About the author
FamilyEducation Staff

This writer is a part of the FamilyEducation editorial team. Our team is comprised of parents, experts, and content professionals dedicated to bringing you the most accurate and relevant information in the parenting space.

View more articles from this author

What's hot

  • MoneyinHands School and LearningTop 10 Graduation Gifts
  • 8 Printable Thank-You Cards for Teacher Appreciation Week School and Learning8 Printable Thank-You Cards…
  • "Thanks, Teacher!" Card Kids Can Color School and Learning"Thanks, Teacher!"…
  • Group of students studying in library School and LearningTop 10 Skills for High-School…
NewslettersNewsletters
Your partner in parenting from baby name inspiration to college planning.
Family Education
FamilyEducation does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Your use of the site indicates your agreement to be bound by our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Information on our advertising guidelines can be found here.

FE Footer

  • Newsletter Center
  • About Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Editorial Policy
  • Editorial Team
  • Expert Panel
  • Cookie Policy
  • Site Map
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Terms of Use
  • Do Not Sell My Info (for CA Residents)
sandbox learning logo
Family Education is part of the Sandbox Learning family of educational reference sites for parents, teachers, and students. 

factmonster logoinfoplease logoTeacherVision logo

sandbbox logo
©2022 Sandbox Networks Inc. All rights reserved. Sandbox Learning is part of Sandbox & Co., a digital learning company.